DC-area Madden pros heading to Hawaii

by Kyle Orland { Feb 8th 2007 at 11:15AM }

The Washington City Paper this week has an interesting look at how two D.C.-area Madden players struggled to win a spot on ESPN2's Madden Nation. The pair criss-crossed the country to win two separate regional finals and an all expenses paid trip to Hawaii, where they'll face off against 30 other finalists for a $100,000 grand prize on national TV.

Not all is wine and roses for these pro-level players, though. Maddener R.J. Warren got fired from his job at a video game store because of his obsession. Justin Chow has fallen a year behind in his studies at Radford University because of time spent with the game. What's worse, Chow says "this Madden thing, and the ability to make money on it, that has ruined me for other games. I'd just feel like I was wasting my time." The Madden, she is a harsh mistress.

Tags: ESPN2, football, madden, madden nation, MaddenNation, sports

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Arglor @ Feb 8th 2007 11:31AM

I wonder how much of the prize money can be calculated into how many madden versions the winners own.

Judd @ Feb 8th 2007 11:44AM

In Soviet Russia, Madden plays you!

Jake @ Feb 8th 2007 11:49AM

I wonder if the hardcore "gamers" that post at these types of blogs will ever consider one of the most important franchises in gaming today as a game. There is plenty to hate; I don't like it myself. But at least respect the fact that it is the biggest game in America.

Top selling franchises of all time (not including Madden07)

1. Mario (Nintendo): 193 million
2. Pokemon (Nintendo): 155 million
3. Final Fantasy (Square Enix): 68 million
4. Madden NFL (Electronic Arts): 56 million
5. The Sims (Maxis/Electronic Arts): 54 million
6. Grand Theft Auto (Rockstar): 50 million
7. Donkey Kong (Nintendo): 48 million
8. The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo): 47 million
9. Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega): 44 million
10. Gran Turismo (Sony): 44 million

Z @ Feb 8th 2007 12:42PM

Wow, Donkey Kong is ahead of Zelda...

matt @ Feb 8th 2007 12:44PM

I love taking people's money in Madden. The bet always starts off small. But when they see me pick the Cleveland Browns they laugh, and I say "Well if that's so funny, why not up the bet?". Then, almost always, I beat them. Thankfully EA Sports is very very generous with my favorite team's stats.

LunarDuality @ Feb 8th 2007 1:00PM

@ Jake

Yes, Madden definitely deserves *some* credit. There must be something about it that makes it sell so well. (Okay, so at this point it might just be the exclusive license, but still.)

I'd be very interested though to see that list you posted but broken down by "# of games sold per release". Meaning, that if Mario has had 20 games and sold 193 million, is it really as amazing as 21+ Final Fantasy games selling 68 million. (Those are just arbitrary numbers BTW although loosely based on the "Best-selling Videogames" Wiki.)